Snapshots Of Jesse
by ChibotleKentucky
Summary: Just short little oneshots involving or centering around Jesse
1. Hair

"My hair is getting way too long" Jesse grumbled one day, stood in front of a body-length mirror as he played with the hair that fell past his nape. Next to him, Lukas hummed in thought. "When's the last time you cut it, out of curiosity?"

"Months ago, i think" Jesse shrugged, exasperated with himself. "I was planning to but then the whole Admin adventure just sort of happened and it slipped my mind. And that whole debacle was almost half a month long unto itself. Just never got the chance"

"Well... Do you want to cut it? Because i think it's kinda cute like this, all long and fluffy. Maybe you could just tie it up in a ponytail? A low one?"

Jesse contemplated this, still fiddling with his hair, before a slight smile crossed his face. "Yeah, that sounds alright. Maybe I'll do that; it'll be a nice change of pace anyway"

"Or we could even just style it. I know that Stella's quite into hairdressing as a hobby. I don't know how skilled she actually is though, so..."

"She likes to play with my hair, so i think she would get too distracted to actually do much with it" Jesse chuckled, rolling his shoulders idly. "She says it's really fluffy, like you do, which will always confuse me since it's not like i use any kind of special hair product"

"Lucky genetics" Lukas smiled. "Now, want me to find scissors or a hairband?"

Jesse considered. "Hair band"

"One coming right up!"


	2. Scars

"Woah, how old is this photo?!" Axel exclaimed, staring at the framed picture Olivia had shown the group. She was smiling. "Very old, but i can't remember exactly when it was taken! It was super far away from the remains of our treehouse too - so it must have gotten blown away in all of that Witherstorm chaos. Explains why it's so damaged, at least" she tapped the frame, which was chipped and discoloured in several places. The glass itself had a large crack that almost covered the entire pane.

"I look... About 16?" Jesse estimated. "17 at a push? That's 6 years ago..."

Next to him, Petra whistled. "6 years? Damn that's a long time ago; we barely knew each other back then! That's even a full year before the witherstorm - i remember you mentioning your birthday was only a few weeks before"

Jesse nodded. "Yeah" he took the picture from Olivia's hands, and frowned slightly as his throat closed up at the sight of a small pink pig in the corner of the image. 'Rueben...'

"Jesse looks so much different!" Axel grinned. "Look how neat your hair used to be! It's so much straighter, too!"

The adventurer huffed. "We've been away from home with no way to brush my hair so many times - i just got used to not doing it. I mean... I do still do it, just less. Old me was bordering OCD" he rubbed the back of his neck, biting his lip. "Still considering cutting my hair, honestly. It's so weird having it longer now"

"Aw, but you look so cute with long hair!" Petra grinned, noogying him. "If it's inconvenient you could always just go the manbun method like Ivor!" she snickered.

Jesse messed with his ponytail, rolling his eyes.

"I look so young too!" Olivia smiled. "I still had such poofy hair back then. It's calmed down so much since..."

"And i look so much shorter!" Axel grumbled. Jesse chuckled. "You look almost the exact same, Axel!"

The larger man just shrugged.

"Jesse has no scars here!" Petra exclaimed suddenly, eyes wide. "You've had them for so long that i almost forgot what you looked like without them!"

The hero felt as if he had just been doused with cold water.

"...Yeah" he whispered, now looking closer at the younger image of himself. His skin had been completely clear aside from slight freckling. No scars.

His fingers came up to trace his face now. It was uneven, the skin, and some parts remained painful or numb to the touch. He had a thin, light pink scar over his right eye and lip. The left side of his face was discoloured from a combination of potion overuse, potion effects, and burning. There was a large scar that arced from his right cheek, over the bridge of his nose and into his hairline, gained from his fight with Cassie.

It all felt like it was burning, so obvious. So... Disgusting.

Olivia was now giving him a concerned look. "Jesse? Are you ok?"

"Yeah" Jesse lied, trying not to focus on how callussed his hands were from how hard he had had to grip his sword during fight after fight after fight, on how his leg was still slightly bent from the witherstorm's grasp, on how his chest still had a large x-shaped scar from Mevia's axes.

"Sorry for bringing it up" Petra finally said, soft. The group had gone silent. Most were fixing Jesse with some variation of concern. "But... For the record? I think your scars are pretty cool. Not because you got hurt, but because they kinda prove how much you've done for us. And for the world. What you would do for all of the people you saved. I dunno, but... I think you should be proud of having them. Or something" the ginger rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry, i kinda suck at pep talks..."

"No. I... I appreciate it" Jesse smiled, and it wasn't as forced as he thought it would be. "Thanks, Petra"

"No problemo. Oh, and also, if anyone ever talks bad about your scars, tell me, 'cause I'll wreck them up!" she grinned. "Ok?"

Jesse laughed, feeling a weight lift ever so slightly from his chest. "Ok."


End file.
